Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

Bai Xinghe’s Dragon King Battlesuit was one of the most distinctive crystal suits of the Flying Star Sector. The dragon-like artificial limbs that could be dated back to the Star Ocean Imperium were unique and could not be found anywhere else.

A hundred super crystal processors were overloading, trying to run computations in order to compare the image with the files of the Dragon King Battlesuit that had been collected earlier.

Ten minutes, a conclusion was out. The artificial limbs were more than 95% similar to the components of the Dragon King Battlesuit!

In the meantime, the preliminary computations on the speed, strength, and combat ability had yielded results, too.

“Long Feihu is in the high level of the Core Formation Stage and has dominated the Heavenly Sword Arena for decades. His combat ability is very high, but he was crushed by the mysterious expert after one attack!

“Powerful defense rune arrays have been established on every star beacon. They should be enough to resist a full-strength shot from the main gun of a crystal warship or the fiercest attack from the peak of the Core Formation Stage. Yet, they were shattered by him within a breath!

“The combat ability the man demonstrated in the minute is definitely in the Nascent Soul Stage!”

Very soon, more and more videos, files, and data were manifested.

The picture from Long Feihu’s crystal camera caught everyone’s attention.

Long Feihu was very experienced. When he realized that he was no match for his enemy, he kept moving his head according to the trajectory of the enemy’s movement. Therefore, his crystal camera captured a relatively stable video clip of 2.1 seconds.

Other than the visible light, the crystal cameras could also capture and analyze invisible light.

For some advanced crystal cameras, they had been installed with special rune arrays to record the various radiations released when spiritual energy was flowing.

By analyzing the radiations, one would be able to tell the route of the enemy’s spiritual energy.

There was such a crystal camera on Long Feihu’s crystal suit.

“The mode of the mysterious expert’s spiritual energy is 75% similar to Bai Xinghe’s ‘Tyrannical Ocean Arts’. It is safe to say that they are the same Cultivation art.

“The ‘Tyrannical Ocean Arts’ is Bai Xinghe’s personal skill. It is said that he inherited the knowledge from Yan Xinjian, the supreme space pirate five hundred years ago. Bai Xinghe never taught the technique to anybody. Even Bai Wulei, his first true disciple, never had the privilege to learn it!”

The weird conclusions cast the command center in a weird silence.

The Cultivators had collected a lot of intelligence about the great strife on Spider Den five years ago. They knew that Bai Xinghe had ended on bad terms with the Immortal Cultivators because of the competition of power and had been killed.

But now, Bai Xinghe, who had disappeared for five years, reappeared in front of everyone?

“I suggest—”

Noticing that Xiao Xuance did not say anything for a long time, Si Koulie spoke seriously. “Bai Xinghe or not, the man has a combat ability at least in the Nascent Soul Stage. He must not be let go of easily!

“We should establish a rapid-response squad targeting the mysterious expert to collect his data, search for his location, run pertinent rehearsals, and draft several plans to capture or kill him!

“The man must have certain plans on his mind now that he has suddenly shown up. We must prepare ourselves early in case we are caught off guard!”

Xiao Xuance frowned but quickly stabilized his facial expression. His eyes, which were wavering just now, suddenly became resolute again. He nodded and said, “Leader Si is right. A man in the Nascent Soul Stage whose identity and purpose are unknown is indeed troublesome. We should make plans and strategies in advance so that he does not become an unexpected factor in our final battle. As for the members of the rapid-response squad…”

Before Xiao Xuance opened his mouth, Si Koulie interrupted him, “The enemy is in the Nascent Soul Stage. Naturally, all the experts in the Nascent Soul Stage on our side must be involved. Other than them, all the elites in other fields should be included, especially the experts adept at tracking and monitoring!”

Si Koulie’s propose was reasonable. Xiao Xuance found no reason to object. Therefore, he agreed quickly. “Alright!”

…

Three hours later, in the headquarters of the Storm Prison Pirate Gang in Capital Nest on Spider Den, Fengyu Zhong was pacing back and forth with great anxiety. He coughed every now and then, making his hunched back even more hunched.

Ever since killing Bai Xinghe and becoming the de facto ruler of Spider Den five years ago, the new king of space pirates had never been more restless.

In front of Fengyu Zhong, the air above a light beam projector suddenly twisted. Blue smoke seemed to be popping up.

A moment later, the smoke condensed into an empty shadow.

Fengyu Zhong was refreshed. He stepped forward and bowed. “Lotus King!”

The Lotus King was emotionless, as if he were wearing a badly-made mast. He asked straightforwardly, “Was Bai Xinghe really killed by you five years ago?”

The appearance of the mysterious expert in the Nascent Soul Stage baffled the space pirates, too. Fengyu Zhong had watched the battle videos more than half a day ago many times. He knew that the Lotus King would ask the question and therefore answered quickly, “He should be dead. After we escaped from the underground fortress, we studied the videos together repetitively. Bai Xinghe was hit by me and the Black King at the same time. More than half of his heart was blown up, and his internal organs were mostly burnt into ashes. It is impossible that he survived.”

The Lotus King said coldly, “But you never found the body.”

“It could not be helped,” Fengyu Zhong said. “The entire underground fortress was filled with water and blocked by rocks and mud. It was like fishing up a needle in an ocean.

“Besides, there were terrifying beasts below ground, which were likely to have already devoured Bai Xinghe’s body. If so, we would not have found the body even if we turned the fortress upside down.”

The Lotus King nodded and approved of the reply. He suddenly changed the topic and asked, “There’s something that is quite odd. The mysterious expert halted for 2.7 seconds after destroying two star beacons, as if he was catching his breath.

“Too many things could happen in a battlefield quickly. The standstill of almost three seconds was enough for many experts to lock onto him. Why did he do that?”

Fengyu Zhong was dazed, not sure what the Lotus King meant.

The Lotus King continued. “Regarding the anomaly, I’ve come up with three possibilities. Now, I want to discuss with you and see if there’s a fourth one.

“Firstly, the man was Bai Xinghe. He was heavily wounded by you and the Black King five years ago but not killed. He snuck underground and treated his wounds in his nest. Now, his wounds have recovered, and he’s out for revenge.”

Fengyu Zhong shook his head and said, “Unlikely. His heart exploded, his internal organs were burnt, his spine was shattered into smithereens, and even his ‘Nascent Soul’ was blown into pieces. Such fatal wounds cannot be recovered within five years.”

His expression unchanged, the Lotus King continued. “Secondly, the man was not Bai Xinghe but Bai Xinghe’s secret disciple, or somebody who accidentally inherited Bai Xinghe’s knowledge.”

Fengyu Zhong thought for a moment and replied, “It’s a more plausible possibility, but there are many suspicious points. Bai Xinghe had a disciple in the Nascent Soul Stage whom he kept a secret for decades? Why didn’t he summon his disciple in the great strife five years ago?

“As to the possibility that somebody found Bai Xinghe’s legacy after he died and Cultivated to the Nascent Soul Stage in only five years… That’s simply absurd!”

The Lotus King continued. “Then, there’s only the last possibility. Under the collective attack of you and the Black King, Bai Xinghe was killed, but then he reincarnated in a different body!”

Fengyu Zhong’s eyes beamed with interest. “Possession?”

He smashed the desk hard and exclaimed, “Right. Right. Everything makes sense now if it was possession. At that time, the Black King and I failed to exterminate him, and he fled with the last bit of his vitality. Then, he found an appropriate body and performed the secret arts of possession, reincarnating himself in the body of someone else!”

The Lotus King asked, “Is there a fourth possibility?”

Fengyu Zhong pondered for a moment and shook his head. “No. Absolutely not!”

“Alright!” The Lotus King quickly made the decision. “Then, with the three possibilities in mind, we will make a set of plans to deal with the man!

“But first, we must make one thing clear. Whether he is Bai Xinghe who hasn’t recovered from his wounds, or he is Bai Xinghe’s disciple, or he is Bai Xinghe’s reincarnation in someone’s body, the real problem is, how high is his Cultivation?”

Fengyu Zhong’s brows furrowed as he said, “I see what you are getting at, Lotus King. If Bai Xinghe hasn’t recovered from his wounds, it is unlikely that he is at his peak state even if he has been treating himself for five years.

“If he is Bai Xinghe’s disciple, it is unlikely that he has advanced into the Nascent Soul Stage after only five years.

“The same goes for reincarnation. Since he has possessed the body for only five years, even if his soul is in the Nascent Soul Stage, his body won’t be half as strong as it used to be.

“Therefore, the man is probably not really in the Nascent Soul Stage. He simply stimulated himself to the Nascent Soul Stage with a certain secret art!”

“Exactly,” The Lotus King said. “It was why he was stiffened for 2.7 seconds after a fierce battle.

“He was exhausted and ran out of strength. Maybe it was because his soul has not adapted to his body yet. Maybe it was because of the recoil of his secret art!

“However, we have to verify our deductions with further investigation. Let’s not jump to conclusions!

“All in all, the man is an unexpected factor. His threat to us is greater than anybody else’s. We have to concentrate most of our attention on him. Find out his real capability first and draft an effective plan of annihilation. Also, lock onto him as soon as possible, whatever the cost. I need to know where he is hiding!”

“Lotus King!” Fengyu Zhong hesitated for a moment but still spoke the truth. “Half an hour ago, I received a message that a ‘Swift Sparrow’-level crystal warship of the Purple Fire Pirate Gang is gone.”

Lightning was flashing in the Lotus King’s eyes as he demanded, “What do you mean by ‘gone’?”

“The crystal warship had undergone tremendous modifications and joined the battlefield as a medical starship. Its mission was to aid the recovery of the exhausted Immortal Cultivators,” Fengyu Zhong explained. “If somebody important was heavily wounded, they could board on the starship and return to Spider Den quickly.

“Therefore, the starship had a high speed.

“Also, in case it was harassed by the Cultivators, the space jump system of the starship remained on all the time. As soon as it was surrounded by the enemy, it could jump out quickly!

“The medical starship has been gone for two and a half hours. At first, we thought that it had been blown up by the Cultivators. But after we scoured the battlefield, we found no debris from it. Judging from the video captured by the crystal warships nearby, the missing starship was not bombarded heavily. It is unlikely that the starship was completely wiped out.

“It just vanished mysteriously, as if it escaped from the Spider Den Space Zone through space jumps without a good reason.”